A one-horse French Open or will somebody stop Sinner?

The next fortnight feels like it will be Jannik Sinner versus the rest.

With the French Open starting on Sunday, there are two pertinent questions as far as the men's singles is concerned.

Can anyone stop the Italian world number one carrying his recent dominance into Roland Garros?

And if Sinner is denied a career Grand Slam in Paris this year, who will be the person to beat him?

With his generational rival Carlos Alcaraz out injured, 24-year-old Sinner begins as the heaviest favourite for the Coupe des Mousquetaires since the great Rafael Nadal.

"He's maybe in the form of his life, and without Carlos being here increases his chances of claiming more Grand Slam titles," said third seed Novak Djokovic.

"But we are all here to try to win against him and prevent him from taking more titles."

The key narrative in the men's game over the past two seasons has been the battle for supremacy between Sinner and Alcaraz, with the pair winning the past nine majors between them.

What has largely been a two-horse race now has a clear leader after Alcaraz was ruled out of the French Open and Wimbledon with a wrist injury.

Sinner has won his past 29 matches - a streak which has only been bettered by two men going into the French Open.

Sinner has been victorious at the past six Masters tournaments - the tier of events below the Grand Slams - sweeping up the Monte Carlo, Madrid and Rome clay-court titles.

"The thing that makes him so good is you get no breathing room from any corner," said Norway's Casper Ruud, who lost 6-4 6-4 to Sinner in the Rome final last week.

"Whether you're playing a forehand cross-court rally, or a backhand cross-court rally, you know the ball will come at a high pace and typically good placement as well.

"You know if you're not very precise with your own shots then he will get on top of you and punish you.

"You know every shot needs to be close to perfect."

Having already claimed the Australian Open (twice), Wimbledon and the US Open, Sinner will take another giant stride to tennis immortality if he adds the French Open title.

Continuing his recent momentum on the clay would see him become only the 10th man to complete the career Grand Slam.

At last year's French Open, Sinner held three championship points before Alcaraz fought back to win an all-time classic final for his second successive crown.

As well as his four major victories, Sinner has won virtually every other important title and spent 72 weeks as world number one.

Landing the Rome trophy last week ensured he completed the full set of nine ATP Masters 1000 titles - known as the 'career Golden Masters'.

"The only way to beat him is being at your best for three sets, maybe even four, five sets," said Russia's Daniil Medvedev, who was the only player to take a set off Sinner in Rome during their semi-final.

"You need to run, be strong, to serve well, to return well. Everything needs to be on the top level."

At this stage it is difficult to see anybody beating Sinner at Roland Garros.

Sinner has only lost to one man other than Alcaraz at the majors since Wimbledon in 2024 - that was Djokovic in this year's Australian Open semi-finals.

The 24-time major champion rolled back the years, showing how he still has the nous and heart to beat anybody.

But, having turned 39 on Saturday, does he still have the physical capability to go all the way on clay?

The fact that Djokovic remains the most plausible challenger to Sinner is a damning indictment on the rest of the men's tour.

Many of the players expected to challenge Sinner are floundering, with a glance at the leading French Open seeds offering little suggestion that he can be defeated.

German second seed Alexander Zverev generally looks beaten by Sinner before he steps onto the court, as demonstrated by a limp 6-1 6-2 defeat in a Madrid final which proved to be a non-contest.

Canadian fourth seed Felix Auger-Aliassime has fallen well short of his best this year, while American pair Ben Shelton and Taylor Fritz - seeded fifth and seventh - have been hampered by injury.

Sixth seed Medvedev recently showing the best form is ironic, seeing as he has never been shy to show his disdain for the clay - and started the European swing with a 6-0 6-0 defeat in Monte Carlo.

"I always say sports is sports. So [Sinner] can lose," said Medvedev, who famously pronounced the red dirt is "for dogs".

"Every round someone is going to be on the other side of the court trying his best to beat him."

And what about players ranked outside of the top 10?

Ruud, seeded 15th, has the pedigree as a two-time finalist at Roland Garros, while Spanish teenager Rafael Jodar has been catapulted among the favourites after demonstrating his potential on the red dirt in recent weeks.

Jodar, seeded 27th, showed his explosive power had the capacity to rock Sinner when they played in the Madrid quarter-final, but maintaining that level consistently was difficult in a 6-2 7-6 defeat.

France's Arthur Fils is fifth in the ATP's seasonal race - behind Sinner, Alcaraz, Zverev and Medvedev - but has been ruled out of his home major with a hip injury.

And there is another factor which could potentially lead to Sinner's downfall - fatigue.

Sinner has played a lot of tennis over the past three months and appeared to be sick on court during his titanic battle with Medvedev.

It was not the first example of Sinner fading physically.

In Melbourne this year, he survived a testing third-round match against American world number 85 Eliot Spizzirri after cramping badly when temperatures crept towards 40C.

A Parisian heatwave - where it is expected to top 30C every day - is forecast over the next week.

The conditions, and not the field, may prove to be Sinner's biggest hurdle.